Unimaginable
by jinxedlies
Summary: So many things could have happened on that faithful day that Max and the flock escaped for the first time from the School, but what would have happened if their leader was left behind? What if Max didn't get away?
1. Prologue

**Technically, this isn't my first fanfiction, since I have four Harry Potter ones completed and one in progress (please read these too, if you're a HP fan), but this is my first one written for the Maximum Ride series, and I really hope this turns out original. There've probably been a few similiar, but I plan to mix things up or poor Max and her flock, so bear with me here...**

**I've been debating for about a week now about whether or not I should even post this, and finally I said, "What the heck?" and put it on. I may or may not continue it. It all depends on whether or not I get some reviews. If it's no good, then say good-bye story and I'll delete it. Remember, in my case, favorites do not count. If you like and would want me to continue, you must review.**

**Disclaimer: Max, Fang, and the rest of the gang to not belong to me. However, in later chapters, there will be a few. Anyone you recognize in not mine...sniff.**

* * *

**Unimaginable**

**By: Ashleyia Days**

**Prologue**

My name is Maximum Ride and I'm a mutant.

No, I'm not one of those messed up teenagers with nothing else to do with their lives other than wish they were different from the rest of the world so they could stand out among the crowd. Really, being different isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Believe me, I could tell you more disadvantages than advantages. There was nothing in a mutant's, like I, life to do other than sit in a cage that was kept in the utmost care...hmm, could that be counted as a plus?

My dream from birth has always been to be a normal human to a normal human society where no white-coats could lock you up for simply having wings that _they_ put in your DNA bloodline to enhance certain genes, and totally add other in--some of which made someone like me stand out in a human crowd.

I have wings.

They were nice wings that had a thirteen foot wingspan, which was about that of an eagles. From what I'd gathered from years of the white-coats tests on me, I knew I probably weighed about the same amount as an eagle would, because humans couldn't fly with their regular weight. I'd long since given up trying to figure out where I kept getting all this information from, but I always came up blank. Eventually, I began thanking myself for good fortune. With it, I knew more about the School, and what they plaaned to do to my flock and I that day.

"Max?" A soft, Angelic voice floated across the small distance that separated the two cages. A small hand reached between the bars, falling short a few inches. "I hear them. Their saying things about you. They want to take you today. New tests. Special ones." The little girl, Angel shivered from the next cage over and it took all my willpower to keep myself from breaking open the cage. It wouldn't work anyway. But I couldn't stand to see my Angel...my baby in pain.

"It's okay, Angel. Don't worry about me. It can't...well, it can't get any worse than last week, can it?" I gave her a smile smile through the bars, wishing I could stop all the terrible thoughts from going through my head. I couldn't lie to Angel. She knew I was frightened. "Please don't worry," I said to her as quietly as I could through the bars. It was early and the rest of the flock was asleep. I was glad--they never seemed to get enough of it. "I-we'll all get out of here soon, okay Angel? Just don't tell anyone. Between you and me?"

"Okay Max." The little girl yawned and went back to sleep.

I wished I could too, but my promise kept me awake. I'd promised to get Angel and the rest of the flock away from this horror house, but how could I do such a thing? From all my knowledge, escaping would be practically impossible. No one had ever done it, but I was sure we were alone here in this spotless building I'd learned to hate so quickly. "Oh, Angel." I probably was the only person in the world who had a sister who you couldn't lie to...just my luck.

I leaned my head against one of the bars, beyond tired, though I still was unable to sleep. My eyes stayed wide open as thoughts whirled through my head. Ideas that were soon discarded, outlines of the School, and past 'tests' I'd participated in raced through my mind like a movie would, and for the first time I realized that we had to get out of this place. If we didn't--there was a chance that they would all one day be killed during an over-excessive test of some sort.

_Angel's too young to die._

My lips twitched into a small smile at the though. Fang had always told me how little self-preservation I had. I simply said back, "Why else would I be the leader?" He'd kept on his emotionless mask at the time, but deep down I knew he was amused. Fang was like a brother to me-- he couldn't hide a thing.

And if he attempted to, I'd just threaten him with little, innocent Angel.

I barely noticed as a few white-coats unlocked my cage door. I only came to my senses as I was walked out of the large metal door, seeing Angel's twisted expression and the dull, lifeless looks of my flock. I had to get them out. They wouldn't survive much longer in this place. We lived in cages--devices that were created to hold animals rather than humans beings!

_I am an animal. We all are._ I set my jaw, willing myself not to tremble at the truth in my thoughts. We are all half birds, half human. Obviously the white-coats only cared about duplicated the cells, rather than remember that we were humans too. "Where are we going?" I knew perfectly well the trained white-coat wouldn't speak to me--they never did. The concept that I could even speak bewildered some of the newer recruits in the field of science. I recognized this one though, and could avidly remember the last time he took me to the testing room. I couldn't suppress _that_ shiver.

"Max." I winced slightly as a familiar voice called my name out a little too cheerily for my liking. For all I knew, I was on my way to the Death Sentence, or whatever. Why hadn't I told Angel to elaborate?

"Hey, Jeb." Out of the corner of my eyes I saw the three white-coats glance at each other nervously. They may not have been surprised that I could talk, but I guess they believed I was able to function enough to say sentences.

Jeb was probably one of the nicest people here at the School, and the only one who acted civil around us, but I was still uneasy. There was something about him that stumped me and I didn't like it. His son, Ari, was okay. In fact, there was a few times I've had to comfort the small boy. In a way, I'd came to love him much as I did my flock.

I ignored Jeb as he continued to try to talk to me. Hey, I was the bird-human and _I wasn't going to listen._ I knew they wouldn't force me too-- or at least Jeb wouldn't. The worse thing they could do to me was hurt me, but they couldn't kill me. I was much too important for that. We all were. I made sure to keep my eyes blank of any emotion as the white-coats led me away from Jeb, into a room to conduct another one of their tests.

* * *

Nearly a week later my body still groaned in pain if I were to make just the wrong move. I didn't make a sound nor complaint. Even if she could read my mind, Angel still needed to be protected. The white-coats were unfair people--she's grown up knowing that-- but was it necessary for her to know everything? Every 'test' which could be classified better under the title 'torture'.

"Fang." We were both outside in a small yard-- a yard that was used specifically for the bird-humans exercise. Angel was near to where Nudge and Iggy sat on a rarely used swing set. Nearby, the white-coats watched and observed. Fang and I were a short distance away from them;just out of hearing distance. Angel was too preoccupied with the white-coats to notice. I didn't want her to know yet; she needed to be protected. "We need to get out of here--soon. We're dying, Fang all of us. Even you."

"I know Max." I gazed curious at his face. How had he learned to keep it so carefully blank? "But this is the School. We can't escape. It's not logically possible. Their scientist, cruel as they may be. They've made this building so we couldn't escape. They built the School for us. To keep us locked up."

I poked Fang hard in the side, wishing I could scream in frustration. Boys! "Maybe that's what they-" I nodded sharply to the white-coats who were busy watching Nudge and Iggy's 'interaction' as they put it. "-want us to think. There's no such thing as impossible when there's a group of bird people want to get out of their cages bad enough. And anyway," I lowered my voice to the softest of whispers. "I have a plan."

"A plan?" Fang didn't look interested, which surprised me. Actually, he looked more reserved and there was one time that _he'd _been the one dreaming of escape.

"Yes, Fang. A plan. And it quite unfortunately was brought up by an unexpected resource."

"Who's that."

"Jeb. I wish we could trust him."

"I say we do. You've always be the more adventurous one of us all. Even you must have thought of the possibility that we would use it. Did Jeb tell you the information we need to get out directly?"

"Yes, and he has a place somewhere that we can stay. I don't like it Fang."

"Me neither. But what other choice do we have? As you effectively brought up a minute ago, we're all nearly dead from the tests and experiments. Look what they did to Iggy's eyes. Sooner or later, they'll try something new. Probably on you, Max. Haven't you noticed their sudden interest in everything you do?"

"Yes, Fang, I'm not unaware, but at least their not all over Angel anymore. She barely more than a baby."

"Which is why we go with Jeb."

"And if we're all killed, you'll know that you were wrong and you'd feel guilty?"

"How could I not?"

"Fine," A small whisper of a smile appeared on my face. "But if we all die and you live, I'll haunt you 'til you're as insane as one of the white-coats."

"Thanks." He mutter back dryly, glaring.

I gave him a sweet smile as I answered. "No problem. Anything for you."

* * *

_It's going all wrong...no, no! _

_I whirled around, attempting to shield the small child in my arm from the twelve attacking beasts that had by now surrounded my flock in our attempt to get away. Jeb promised it would be safe! He promised...he sold us out. Even with the child in my arms I still managed to kick a charging Eraser in the stomach, making him pause for a minute. "Little birdies need to go home...back to their itty-bitty cages." I ground my teeth together and ignored the stumbling Eraser. Fang had injured already, most likely by the surprise that he attack had given us. And we'd been so near to getting away. _

_Fang's arm was cut open and blood stained the dirt below his feet. His eyes were gleaming and he was somehow managing to keep one of the Eraser's from getting to him. I smiled in his bravery. At this rate, we'd all get caught. Iggy was doing well or being blind. He had amazing senses that rivaled by own and had already taken out a Eraser. He was too young to be fighting this battle. The rest of the flock was scattered, trying to fend off the Erasers. _

_An especially cocky one jumped from the formation and I lunged or him. Of course, I'd given Angel to Nudge, who wasn't in on the fight. Her eyes radiated fear, but she took the little four year old willingly. "Fang!" I shouted as the Eraser leapt for his back. He turned in enough time to get a set of claws raked across his face. _

_In anger, I round-kicked the Eraser, sending him flying. "Fly!" I told him. "It's the only way we have any chance."_

_Most of the flock had heard my order and obediently started to rise in the sky, away from the mangled Erasers. Nudge was having trouble with Angel, who was too heavy for the other girl. I landed, fang by my side. "Give Angel to Fang, Nudge. We-" What I was about to say was cut off as I was threw off balance by a sudden movement to my left. _

_Before I could process the movement, an Eraser had my neck gripped between two of his massive paws. "Fang!" I cried between gasps, "Take Angel--the flock--go. Get away. Please--don't ever come back for me. I'll manage. Promise me!" Fang was already in the air, along with Nudge. Even his cool manner was broken, Emotion radiated off his face. "Fang!"_

_"I promise."_

_"Don't break it." I gave him a small smile before the paws tightened and I fell into a lapse of darkness. It was just before that, that I realized how many injuries I must have if I were this weak. _

**Hehe, I think this classifies as a cliffie. Who wants more? **

**If you raised your hand review and that's what you'll get. **

**And yes, it did go a little fast for my taste, but it's only a prologue, so there'll be more in the upcoming chapters. Basically, I wanted to outline what could have gone wrong in Max's escape from the School and how it would effect the lives of the whole flock. And because of this, Max is going to descover a secret that has been kept from them for years.**


	2. What Jeb Said

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Maximum Ride. If I were, would I really be writing this and putting it on Fan Fic? I think you already know the answer to that. Howerever, I do own Arrow, who is introduced later in the chapter. Enjoy! I really, hope everyone reviews! Wait a minute... who really reads these things anyway?**

**This takes place about a week after the Plologue. Sorry if anyone is disappointed, but at the beginning this is a bit fast paced. it should slow down near the middle, but I can't even be sure. **

**Just in case anyone cares and doesn't like this, Max will be undergoing a bit of err..._change_ in the next chapter or so. You'll know what I mean later, trust me. **

**Okay, little background before you start; In the past week, Max has been in a depressed rut, and the white-coats don't like it. You know, she's their only test subject at the moment since the flock escaped, and they (and their 'scientific knowledge') believe her depression will change results. They have a big 'test' coming up, and their actually sacrificing their only subject to the first test of it. What is it? You'll know later. Max has no idea what's in store for her...and her flock.**

**Yes, this is a shorter chapter and really just a very important fill-in. Next chapter should be longer. Or not. Your choice. Longer chapters with longer periods of time between updates, or short chapters(about the size they are now) with frequent updates?**

**Unimaginable**

**By; Ashleyia Days**

**Chapter Two; What Jeb Said**

I sat up, sweating and pale as a ghost. It was that dream again.

I wanted to laugh so badly at myself. I wanted to laugh so hard that I couldn't stop and I wouldn't try to. I'd just keep laughing and laughing, waiting for it to wear off, yet knowing somehow that it never would. I wanted to laugh myself sick, then keep on laughing. I wanted to go insane laughing. Me. Maximum Ride. Insane due to laughter. At that, I wished I could laugh harder.

But I couldn't. Because I wasn't laughing at all. I couldn't laugh. My life was an echo now. Everything was so, well, so pointless anymore. There was no Angel in the next cage over, whimpering and crying in the darkness that surrounded them. Fang wasn't deep in sleep, a slight rustled from across the narrow hall that separated the cages. Gazzy and Iggy's snores weren't there as they should be. Nudge wasn't still awake,muttering her dreams and wishes that, at one point, had seemed so unlikely.

I heard nothing. They were gone. They were out there, out of the school, starting a promising life. Fang would take care of little Angel for me. He wouldn't abandon them like so many would have. He didn't have the natural leadership, nor the mother instincts I had, but he would still make sure they had lives to live. Nudge's dreams were possible now.

Because I stayed behind and got my self captured. Typical me.

"Ohh..." I groaned, leaning my cheeks against the side of the too small cage. It had become natural for me to stay in this position all night, never sleeping.

The white-coats didn't bother me like they had before. I was taken out of the cage for an occasional test, but other than that, nothing happened. Every once in a while a white-coat would check on me. If it was Jeb, he would attempt a conversation with me, but I only glared and he went away.

Jeb. I scowled at the name. He was suppose to be protecting them at his place. He was suppose to be with them. But he wasn't--he'd came back to the school a week after their departure. He left them alone, and I resolved to never forgive him for that.

I sat in that position, only sleeping for minutes at a time before snapping awake when I was positive I heard a noise...a rustle maybe. It would be nothing-- it was always nothing. My flock was gone and I was only then beginning to accept the tragic fact. They were gone and I was here. But if I had to choose whether one of my flock was here or me, there was no doubt that I would pick me. The white-coats could do what they wanted with me, as long as they didn't get my flock.

My eyes were glazed over, tired from sleep, when I noticed Jeb had a set of keyes in his hands, a small smile stretched tightly across his face, as if it was being forced of him. "Come on, Max." He siad, sounding just as nice as ever. I wished he would do something that showed me that I couldn't trust him, but I was never quite that lucky. "You're moving."

"Moving?" I'd been at the school for fourteen years and never once had they moved any of us around. "Why?"

"I figured you were alone by yourself."

"So you're moving me to an area where I have plenty of white-coats always surrounding me. What a lovely description of company." I turned away from the door, but stopped short when I saw Jeb waiting, his eyes showing nothing but patience.

"You're...company are not white-coats, as you put them. I believe they dislike them as much as you do."

"Their other people like me, aren't they? Here's some new news for you; I'm avian. No matter who sees me, other experiments or not, I'm still a freak."

'Max," Jeb muttered, impatient. "Trust me this once."

I narrowed my eyes, searching for a flaw in his expression, but once again I was sadly denied that pleasure. "Fine."

I followed closely behind Jeb as he exited the room I'd stayed in for my entire life. It held memories of my flock, and I was partly sad to leave it. I followed only with the hope that, wherever I was being moved to, it would have larger cages. I'd long since grown out of my past one. These 'roommates' of mine had better not care that I have wings and I won't care if they have scale or something.

I felt my eyes drawn to a small set of keys in Jeb's hand as he walked, rather impatiently, down the modern halls. Even here I felt trapped, caged. I couldn't help but wonder why Jeb was acting so odd today. It was as if he was expecting me to rip him to pieces at wherever I was going. If it's as bad as he's making it, I'll be happy to oblige.

The metal walls surrounded me on every side, and I drew another breath. I didn't like being confined in a small area, even if I grew up in such an area. Perhaps it was a results of all those years in a cage, only being let out to become another one of the white-coats guinea pigs...the tester of all their little surprises. "Can you not even tell me where we're going?"

"I don't believe I need to."

"What do you mean?" I snapped back. I was in no mood for his riddles.

"We're here." He said simply, opening a door familiar to the one I'd been trapped behind before. My heart sunk. "And Max," He said a little quieter. "Don't think you're the only one left."

"Wha-?"

"Shh. No more questions." Jeb gave me a small push forward. It wasn't rude, just a reminder that I'd be better off if I started to move. I didn't dare allow me eyes to wander to the figures in the five cages I passed. I couldn't--would they be physically different? Or mentally? I really didn't care. I just hoped they would leave me alone.

Jeb unlocked a cage that was slightly larger than my other one-- at least something good came out of this. The only bad thing was I had to keep my eyes firmly on the square tiles to keep myself from looking at their faces.

Jeb exited the room quietly and I resumed my natural position leaning against the bars. I sighed softly, wishing I would have gotten away too. What would have happened if I had?

Who are you?" The voice was nearby and my hopes drooped. Though it was considerate of me, I'd been hoping that my roommates wouldn't be able to talk. The person who spoke was obviously male, his tone hushed to a dull whisper, probably to keep the other in the room unaware of the conversation. My eyes flickered up to the face in the cage next to mine.

He wasn't necessarily good looking, but he wasn't the worst rose of the bunch either. And he looked perfectly normal from my perspective. This fact gave me enough courage to lift my chin a bit more and smile sadly. "I don't just give out my name to random people."

"Here, I'm hardly considered a _person._" The scorn in his voice was close to my own. I looked at him in surprise.

"Really? What's wrong with you? I can't see anything..."

"Like you don't know. You're just another person they sent to spy."

"_Spy?"_

"You know." He accused. "The white-coats send in someone every month who looks normal, like us, but isn't. Their just spies..other white-coats, trying to figure out our secrets. Like _you._"

He was accusing me of being a white-coat? Me of all people? Or Avians...

"I can tell you that I'm definitely not a white-coat. I hate their guts. I'm more worried about _you _being the spies. Their's nothing wrong with you. There _is_ something wrong with me_._"

The boy looked quite angry. "Just so you know," He said, and I noticed that the others were looking at us now. A small girl, who could be no older than four was huddled in the corner, reminding me of Angel. My heart panged. "We're all _birds_. What could be more wrong than that?"

_"Avians."_ I whispered to him, stunned, "You're _Avians._"

"Yeah, what are you?"

I looked into his blue eyes, suddenly at a loss. Tears welled up in my eyes. "I'm Max." I said finally, "And I'm an avian, too."

The shock in his eyes was almost funny.

"Prove it."

I winced. I didn't like to show off my wings like a freak show. The only time when my flock and I saw each others wings were the few times the white-coats allowed us to fly in a dome, so they could record our natural flight. It was never actually, enjoyable. At the School, nothing was. "You sound like a five year old." I pointed out. "You should know if you've been here that there's no room to maneuver in these cages. You've been here twice as long."

"Then why are you here now. Why not before?"

"I had my flock."

"Your flock? Where are they now? Did the white-coats separate you?"

'So now you believe me?" I sighed, pulling at the loose strands of hair that had been cut recently so I'd be able to participate in a test. "They escaped. I gave up my freedom so my flock could escape without me. That was a week ago."

The boy was quite until he finally looked up, a small smile on his naturally sad face. "My name is Arrow." He said, slowly. "And this is _my _flock."

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	3. Knowing Truth

**Yeah, yeah, I know. Shortish chapter. But, it's the longest so far. I really hope I can start making these a bit longer. **

**Disclaimer; If I owned Maximum Ride, wouldn't my name be on the front cover of the books? However I do own the following characters; Arrow, Daela, Brytt, Cammi, Vissa, Dyami**

**Yay to all my reviewers, luv ya all!**

**Unimaginable**

**By; Ashleylia Days**

**Chapter Two; Knowing Truth**

I starred at Arrow's face for a couple seconds after his words, just then realizing how pale he was, compared to how the white-coats always looked. I wasn't sure why, but it made me feel nervous. Did I really look that way too? Angel's face popped into my mind and I realized it for the first time. We really were dying, just as I'd told Fang. I hadn't really meant it, but I knew it would help get Fang to cooperate in escaping. It never occurred to me that what I'd been saying was really true.

I wasn't sure exactly why dying was what came up as I looked into his sapphire blue eyes. Perhaps it was the pain echoed deep within, or the obvious flickering of suspicion that betrayed him every time a living soul came near. We were all dying. Once more, I knew we had to escape, only this time I would take a flock that wasn't mine.

And it would have to be planned out better. I wasn't about lead us all into a suicide mission. The white-coats would be high on security for a long time, expecting us to escape. No-- this time we would be patient and we'd get away...all of us. This time I wouldn't trust Jeb; I would have to do this all on my own.

I just have to get Arrow to agree.

But that would come in the future. There was a major chance that we would have to wait a year or two to perfect the plan and get the white-coats to lower their guard. There was time. Plenty of time. We would all escape the place called the School, even if it was the last thing I do. _No one deserves to be locked into cages, not even mutants. We're all human...or at least _part_ human._

Were they really so different that no one could accept that?

_Yes,_ The answer echoed in the back of her mind, a faint wisp, _Yes. _

_"_You're Arrow," I faltered slightly, seeing his eyes narrow. "And I'm Max. Can...will you tell me the names of the rest of your flock? I'm curious."

He looked hesitant, but eventually nodded, almost sheepishly. He pointed towards a cage that was the farthest away and I could make out a girl, not much younger than Arrow or I. "That's Cammi. She's thirteen and has stupidly tried to escape eight times before the white-coats figured out how to keep her from trying, though they don't know how she does it."

"I can go invisible." The girls voice was strained, as if she was having a hard time speaking. My heart twinged. "They don't know it, but they don't ever let me out anymore--not even to go outside.

"Invisible?" I inquired. "That's--how's that even possible?"

"We all have powers of some sort." Arrow told me, shaking his head lightly. "It has to be the mix-up of certain genes. We can do things birds can't do, and yet we also can not do things humans can. It may be odd, but some of the skills are useful."

"I don't think I'm anything special." I said, full of doubt. "Angel..." I realized suddenly.

"Angel?" Arrow interrupted, head tilted slightly to the side, thinking. "Who's that?"

"She's the youngest in my flock--four."

Arrow nodded, uncomfortable. "As I was saying. Brytt is ten. He's probably the most troublesome. Whatever you do, don't ever ask him what his name means. I couldn't believe he actually called himself that!"

"It means 'Slayer'." Chipped in an oddly cheerful boy, opposite of me. His eyes were full of mischief as he continued. "The white-coats can't stand it. They tried to make me change it, but they went away when I told them that--"

"That's enough." Arrow glared at the boy, silencing him. "Sometimes, Brytt, you don't seem to know how to keep your mouth shut."

My mouth twitched, nearly smiling. I knew a couple others like that.

"There's Vissa." This time he spoke of a girl who looked back at me with such rebellion that I wondered how Arrow-- and the white-coats for that matter-- managed to keep her from sabotaging the whole School. I couldn't help but look at her in wonder. She was so young, yet she seemed to be even more in control than Arrow. "She's nine, and very _difficult._" He said the final word in a whisper, though the girl obviously couldn't hear. "Deaf." He said sadly, answering my question. "But she was born that way and she somehow managed to learn to recognize sounds by air vibrations. Whether it's quiet or not, she can hear...or feel, I guess."

"You bet." The girl mumbled from the corner, but this time I was in awe.

"That's amazing."

"Not really."

"Daela." Arrow rolled his eyes. I was happy, though. Perhaps they would allow themselves to get close to me. This girl was smaller, huddled in the corner of her cage. Her lips were moving, yet no sound appeared to come from them. I looked at Arrow questioningly, and he seemed saddened. "Poor Daela. She's eight, but she hasn't ever said a single word to any of us."

"Stupid white-coats."

I jumped at the new voice-- it was young and so full of hate. The person who'd spoken it had a surprising resemblance to the silent, muted girl and I was struck with the idea that they were siblings. "I'm Dyami. It means 'Eagle'. Daela's my twin sister."

"Right-" Arrow said before I could utter a word. I glared at him... I had the oddest feeling that he was trying to keep me from asking to many questions. He was still suspicious, then. Suddenly, his face was solemn as he looked at the final cage in the room, where a small girl was in even worse shape than Daela. "That is Azura. Six, and she's terrified of her wings."

"What?!" My face was contorted from shock. No one from my flock could even dislike their wings. After all, it was the white-coats fault that they were at the School not the wings. "How can you be terrified of them?"

"The white-coats did a series of...tests... on her. They were worse than all of ours put together. We don't know what happened, but when she came back, she wasn't the bright four year old I raise. She talks, but rarely and if she sees her wings or ours, she goes...crazy, I suppose."

"What could they have done that would make her like that?" I whispered, a horrified expression on my face. If they would do something like that to a little four year old, what would stop them from doing it to me, or even Arrow? "What could possibly be that bad?"

"There are plenty of things, Max. We just don't know them."

* * *

Fang wished he could pound his head into the wall.

The flock had been very successful in getting away from the School...after Max had been captured. He closed his eyes--he'd seen the evident fury in the Eraser's face as he'd knocked fang's flock leader out cold. Fang knew...he knew that there wasn't a chance that Max had made it back to the School alive. The last thing he'd seen before leading away the flock was her pained expression as the clawed fist came down on her skull.

"_T__ake Angel--the flock--go. Get away. Please--don't ever come back for me. I'll manage. Promise me."_

Fang hissed as the last words Max had said to him before they took her. How could she have asked something like that of him? Hadn't she known that he would go back to rescue her if there was even the slightest possibility that she was alive.

But there wasn't.

After an escape like that, there wasn't a chance they'd allow such a dangerous creature to roam, and have the possibility of her getting free again. _Max. How could you leave me with this responsibility? I'm fourt_e_en. I can't deal with this._

But Max had. She'd always been the perfect flock leader. She had all the leadership qualities. fangs knew well that he didn't. He couldn't take care of Angel, Nudge, Iggy, and Gazzy the way she had. She was like their mother. Fang was positive he wouldn't be able to be the same towards them. He would have keep them all from the clutches of the Erasers.

A small hand suddenly clasped onto his own and he looked down at the small figure that shrunk in comparison to himself. Fang lowered himself to his knees to get eyes level with the small girl who's face was tear streaked. "Fang," she said almost inaudibly. "It's Max. She-she's getting fainter. I can barely even sense her anymore. I can't read her at all. She...I dunno, Fang. I think she's dying."

"What if we went back for her?"

"I think it's too late." Angel muttered. "By the time we get there it will be. And you _promised_ her you wouldn't go back."

"You know," Fang emotions were locked behind a tightly closed door again, "sometimes I believe you're way too mature for your age. You're four."

"I'll be five soon." The girl pointed out, before setting off in the opposite direction. Since Max had been captured, Angel had taken to Nudge to express her feelings to. Fang guessed that was where Angel was heading right then.

_If you have to die, Max, _Fang thought to himself solemnly, watching the sun disappear for the night, _please let it be quick for you._

* * *

"Max."

I groaned. There was a voice...so close...yet so very far. Who's was it? I struggled to open my eyes, to emerge from sleep, but suddenly, I decided it wasn't important enough to get up. They could just come back in the morning. They should know better than to interrupt me while I got my well-needed sleep.

"Max."

There it was again, slightly louder this time. There was a tinge of annoyance in the persons voice, but I didn't care in the least. _I_ was annoyed too. Whoever it was, was interrupting my sleep!

"Max!"

"What?!" I yelled back, hardly aware that it was even me until I realized that I was now sitting up and staring at a very smug looking Arrow.

"I think we need to talk without being over heard by rather...unwanted ears." The boy glared over at a still figure, Brytt most likely. "Do you mind? I didn't really want to wake you up this late, but any other time, well, we'd have eavesdroppers listening in."

"Can't complain now, can I?" I grumbled, pushing myself up off the hard metal floor. "It's not like I can go back to sleep after such a rude awakening. So, I guess the answer has to be yes, eh?"

Arrow smiled. Though I didn't know their pack at all, I was still remarkably glad that they were alright in a whole. It had to have been my motherly instincts acting up again...as Iggy would have so kindly put it. "First off, I though you should know that you snore..._loud._"

"I do not!"

"Believe what you want." Arrow held up his hands in mock surrender, still sounding a little too cocky. "But it's true, whether you like it or not."

"Whatever." Suddenly I wished that I wasn't in a cage-- and not just for the obvious reasons. "You got me up at--well, really early. Can we just get on with this. And I swear, you say one more thing about snoring and you'll wish you'd never met the great Max half-breed."

Arrow snorted. "Only someone like you would be able to say that so casually."

"Your point?"

"Max, I was curious. I mean, I really want you to join the flock, because you seem like a nice person, but I just met you this morning and I just can't trust that easily. But I really need the help. I'm fourteen and I have to help them out everyday, but I can't get near them. I want to help Daela with her talking and Azura with her wings, but I can't. Even if I was out of a cage, then I still wouldn't be able to help. I'm not a leader, Max. I was never meant to be one." I wished I could reach out and comfort him, even if he was my age. He did have a lot to deal with...it was even more than I.

"I swear," I told Arrow, determination in my eyes, "that this will stop. The white-coats can't keep doing this to you. I got my flock out, Arrow, and now I'm going to et you guys out."

"No, Max. Please don't."

"Why not. You're all suffering here. I want to get you out so we can sure their problems."

"You're not going to sacrifice yourself for us."

I closed my eyes, unsure of how to make him see. "My life isn't worth anything if we don't get out. I can't stand to see everyone I know locked behind bars for all of eternity. Even if I'm left, then I'd still feel relief."

"Give it a couple years, Max. Think it out before you act. Do at least that much for me and I might agree. First, we need time to adjust, though. Not everyone is as ready as you are."

"Take as long as you need. We're going to get out of here."

**6 reviews! Keep 'em comin' people! See, everyone gets mentioned at the bottom of the page, so if you've ever wanted you're name in a story, here's your chance!**

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**Kyphus Maltorix- Oh! I didn't even notice. I went back to the prologue, read it, and still couldn't figure out what part rhymed until my best friend came over and had to point it out to me. Max, Fang...Gang...ha. I'm such a dope sometimes. I can't believe I wrote that...YIPPEE! You're review makes me want to write the next chapter, but I can't. It's too late...or too early, I suppose. Darn.**

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**Erm, yeah. So just click the button. You know, the one that says 'Go'**


	4. Remembrance

**Unimaginable**

**By: Ashleyia days**

**Chapter Three: Remembrance**

_Previously..._

_"You're not going to sacrifice yourself for us."_

_I closed my eyes, unsure of how to make him see. "My life isn't worth anything if we don't get out. I can't stand to see everyone I know locked behind bars for all of eternity. Even if I'm left, then I'd still feel relief."_

_"Give it a couple years, Max. Think it out before you act. Do at least that much for me and I might agree. First, we need time to adjust, though. Not everyone is as ready as you are."_

_"Take as long as you need. We're going to get out of here."_

"Max?" I groaned, rolling over. I was used to the stiffness that came from sleeping in cages. It was all I knew. The white-coats slept on beds where you didn't wake up sore every morning. It was such a luxury. They get to sleep in mounds of covers, sheets, and bedspreads, while we-- the ones who had to do all the physical stuff-- slept on hard metal. _It's not fair._ But our lives have always been unfair.

"Go away!"

"Max." Jeb's voice sounded again, shattering my hopes at getting anymore sleep. " I need to tell you something."

It was Jeb, of course. It just had to be Jeb. Of all the whitecoats in the building, they just had to send him... "Well, what is it, then?" I grumbled propping myself up on my elbows, giving him a glare that I impressed myself with. I cast a look around to make sure Arrow's flock was all there. Though I'd already told myself I wouldn't get close to them-- I couldn't put them at risk like that-- I decided I could probably still make sure their all right. Especially, Azura, the little girl who was afraid of her own wings.

To my surprise when I looked up to meet Jeb's eyes they were full of true sadness. In my confusion, I locked my gaze on Arrow, who looked as startled as I was. "Max-I really don't know how to say this to you." He leaned over, against arrows cage self-consciously. "I-It's your flock, Max. Fang, Iggy, Angel, Nudge, Gazzy...Our Erasers found them--"

"No!" I shouted, unaware that I'd even done so until the news sunk in again. I fought keep my voice under control as I spoke my next words slowly."Are they...coming back now, then?"

"No, Max. They fought...too hard. It was an accident really. An Eraser malfunction. They're not coming back. They all died."

The news meant nothing to me until I felt its impact on my stomach. It was a low jolt that stung horribly. I was the last member on the flock. Not even my Angel survived. So young, too, all of them. Fang, the oldest, was only thirteen, like myself! How could simple Eraser 'malfunction' kill an entire group of kids? Surely there would have been someone there to stop them?

Anger, pain, and rejection made my eyes fill with tears. I noticed that Jeb was gone already, but how could I care? The only reason I'd fought to live all these years were all gone. Gone... "I don't believe it." I cried softly, wishing I was strong enough that I wouldn't cry at all.

"Please," Arrow said from the next cage over. He too, looked slightly paler from the information he'd acquired. "I know you need to mourn, but in this place, a weakness is a weakness. If the white-coats saw you like this they would find some reason to test on you."

"Arrow, worry about yourself. As you pointed out last night, I'm not part of your flock, so you need to leave me out of all this, okay? You have to focus on the people you need to protect the most...not _want_ to." I was still unsure of how to tell Arrow's emotions apart. He was much like Fang--he often kept them to himself. Despite this, I could tell how much he wanted to argue, even when knowing perfectly well that I was right.

"Max, how can you stand knowing that your flock is...dead? Why aren't you screaming at me, or something?"

"We all die, some earlier than others. I was expecting them to all die, but I thought I'd be with them... Either way, I was prepared. You've got to be when you run a flock that all are keen on escaping from the first time they develop enough of a mind to think. And anyway, I wouldn't scream at you. It's not even you're fault. Jeb however..."

"So basically, you're going to wait until the white-coats let you have some peace from everyone, including us, and then you'll cry? Even if it's ten years from now?"

"Pretty much."

A few days passed and my mood continued to damper a bit every day. Arrow keep reminding me that it was bad to keep all your feelings bottled up inside you...that I should just let it go and cry. I told him to bug off and let me keep my pride. Amazingly, that scared him off enough that I could continue my life in peace.

The white-coats hadn't come in since I'd arrived to stay with Arrow's flock, and it made me curious. Eventually, Arrow admitted that my flock had been the main experiments. While one of my flock would have been taken everyday, someone from Arrow's would only get taken away about once a month. I tried to keep my anger down...everything painful always seemed to center around me and my lack of luck.

"They'll come today." Arrow stated suddenly, snapping me from my dazed state. I was partially glad, but then again, I wasn't. There wasn't much we hadn't talked about in the last couple days, except he still kept extra information about his flock far from her ears. "It's been a month today. I hope they don't take Daela. But she hasn't been taken in eleven months, so it's more than likely..."

"Arrow," I sighed, wishing I could reach him through the bars. Somehow, it just wasn't fair that his arms were long enough to reach that far. "will you quit going on about it? I know you;re worried...so am I, but saying the same things over and over isn't going to get us anywhere."

"What else is there to do?' I couldn't help but stare at him in shock . I was the type to loose my temper anytime I felt like it--which was often-- but Arrow had always been cool and collected, much as Fang always...was. "Geez! We get to sit in a cage all day talking to each other--_maybe--_and only get out to exercise--_rarely. _What else can we do that isn't worrying?"

"I'm sorry, but it's _isn't_ going to do anything except make you scared. In my flock before we...tried to escape, we knew that we had to block off those feelings. Even Angel."

"Max, we're not your flock. You're not ours and you never will be. Thanks for the advice, but no thanks." He snapped the words out in a rush. Tears burned behind my closed eyelids as I turned away. _Let them take him, _I thought in my bitterness, forgetting an early lesson I'd been taught; What goes around comes around.

"I know," I whispered back quietly, only audible to myself and maybe Arrow, "because the people who really care about me are dead. You don't see how good you have it." If he heard me, he didn't reply back. It was the most I could ask for.

I didn't know I'd been asleep until I was jolted awake by a curious looking white-coat-- _A newbie, _I thought.-- along with Jeb who averted my gaze as he motioned for me to get out. The truth dawned on me. They weren't taking one of Arrow's flock today; they were taking me!

Perhaps they didn't know that I wasn't accepted as part of _his_ flock.

"I'm _not_getting out." I practically snarled at Jeb, wrenching my arm from his soft grip. I couldn't trust this man anymore. "Especially not for _you_."

"That's good then, Max, because I'm not the one taking you. He is." Jeb thrust his head towards the man in a gesture that looked comforting. Yes, that was sarcasm. I stayed stock-still, wondering what they would do if I continued to refuse. Most likely I would be taken forcefully, or with tranquilizer darts. Ugh.

I knew Jeb didn't want to make our relationship any worse, so he couldn't yell at me. I smiled smugly at him as he looked at me, almost bug-eyes at my refusal. The white-coat was looking between us, confused. I could have laughed at the expression on his face, but I was trying to be serious, even if it wasn't working.

"You'd better get out." Jeb sighed. "Just do it, Max. I hate forcing you to do things like this."

"Oh yes," I said back, noticing my voice was practically dripping with sarcasm. "You'd hate to force me to go to tests every day of my stinkin' life! And yet, you still do! Amazing!"

The white-coat still watched, his face now calculating as he wrote a few notes down on a clipboard I just then noticed he was carrying. Lovely. Now they had even more notes on the notorious Maximum Ride, the wondrous girl-bird freak. Jeb opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off, knowing that we weren't getting anywhere. "Fine, I'll go, but I'd just like you to remember that I hate you for what you did to them."

Despite his natural calm, I still expected him to lash out in some way. When he didn't, I sighed. _Some people never change._

Jeb stayed behind as the white-coat led me out of the room, casting a few nervous glances behind himself--checking on me, I suppose. I still have no idea why they do that--surely they knew that I had no motivation to get out of the School. I just wanted the smaller ones out. They didn't deserve to die here.

I did.

I failed my flock, a crime that I'd be ashamed of until I die. Though they got their moments of freedom, I was the one still alive here. So far, if Jeb had told me correctly, I'd lived exactly an entire week without my flock...and two since I'd last seen them with my very own eyes. I did have a small picture that I kept with me at all times, but that was my only reminder.

Jeb was the one who made the picture possible, surprisingly enough. Somehow, he'd managed to sneak us all out of out cages and snapped a photo quickly, and giving both Fang and I a copy before he retreated, rather sheepishly. "Where are we going already?" I asked the white-coat suddenly, rolling my eyes when he jumped. He didn't answer--they never answer.

The hallways of the School bored me to no end. There were an endless amount of turns-- so many that even my great memory couldn't keep up with the lefts, rights, and various backtracks. It was all to confuse me, so I wouldn't be able to find my way out. There was a large possibility that the place where I was going was right down the hall from the starting point. Oh, the insanity of white-coats.

"This is-" I started.

"Maximum Ride." I raised my eyes to a prompt, strict looking woman in the scientific coats that were too familiar. Another white-coat, then. Though I didn't show it, I was surprised--usually the white-coats called me by my number rather than my name. "I believe I have to explain something."

"I think you're right."

She ignored me, just as I suspected. "You've been decided a danger to your current...roommates. You're stress levels are much too high--"

"Don't talk to me in that phony science language stuff. Talk so a regular person could understand you!"

"--The Board has decided to dedicate a few...recently discovered techniques on you, to test your reactions and possibly give us the chance to put you back with the others."

"Basically," I sighed, "you want to try some new tests that are potentially life threatening on me because I'm the one who most likely is effected by the recent death of my entire flock, courtesy of the Erasers. You don't want to try it out on the others because their too young, or are required in upholding the second flock, am I right?"

The woman looked flustered. I realized she probably wouldn't answer my question. "Whatever. Just take me wherever I'll be living until I die of some reactions from the drugs or pills or surgeries that you're going to do on me. I just hope it's a larger cage. Those middle sized dog crates are a little too small for my liking."

"O-of course." She smiled weakly. "I suppose I will."

The white-coats never cease to amaze me with their...

I don't even have a word for it.

_Flashback_

_"You know," said a younger Fang to Max as they talked their way through another endless day stuck in their dull cages. The others were asleep, and they whispered as not to awake the small children who didn't deserve this life at all. "if we ever get out of here, the first thing I'm going to do is get a blog."_

_"What's that?" Max asked him, curious. It was a new term to her, after all._

_"A blog is like, I don't know, a place to tell other people about yourself and who your family is and what you like--that kind of stuff I guess. I think you can do what_ever you want_."_

_"What could you use a blog for?" _

_"Well, if we ever get out of here I want to tell everyone about the School and what they do do people like us...the tests. We could tell the entire would and everyone would rebel and then we wouldn't have to run or hide. We could actually walk the streets without being caught by those weird wolf things."_

_"Erasers. Fang, if you put a blog up, could the white-coats just track it down?"_

_"I don't know, but even if they can, I'll still do it."_

_"Only you Fang, only you."_

**I'd love for everyone to note that in the flashback, Fang and Max are several years younger, about six or seven. Please don't ask about how Fang knows about blogs...it's not really something I want to explain in long detail...**

**As you may or may not have noticed, I didn't update until I had a total of five reviews for this chapter. I will try to update ever time I get 5 reviews, but I can't promise anything! I really hope this is going right...don't worry, Max will escape sometime soon, I'm testing all your guys's patience. Stick with the story. And if you have this story on your alert list, I'd really like it if you reviewed...please...**

**Review Responses**

**the epitome of randomness-Erm, I can't speak German...I've tried but I'm terrible at it... And, as you can see from this chapter, I don't plan on making Max and the other flock get along real well. Max may have a little kindness towards the younger of Arrow's flock, but that's only because she doesn't think they deserve the life they have.**

**Summer Johnson-****Yippee! Someone who actually thinks I have good grammar. My Engish teachers have always said I'm terrible, even though I was in the higher english classes every year...Oh well. Glad you liked the update!**

**Kyphus Maltorix-****If you can't tell by now, I love making people feel important. I put these at the bottom of the page because I think some people deserve to be noted for their kindness to review. Then again, it's also because I have always personally wanted a space down here...hmm.**

**Kyphus brought up a good point. I think everyone should know that Brytt is pronounced like the word 'bright' and it comes from the Old English language. Dyami (Duh-yah-mee) is from a Native American tongue. Azura, means 'sky blue' in Persian. **

**And, I'm quite glad you like my story:)**

**-No.Day.But.Today- -NDBT-**** Thanks!!**

**BlackVampireKat- ****Well, it had to stop, because...erm...I have no idea. Perhaps it's because I had no idea what else to write at the time? I'm confusing myself now...**

**Glad you liked the extra characters. I wasn't sure how everyone else would like me adding them in and when I didn't hear anything I was a little worried I was giving everyone a negative effect or something... Sorry, but I can't help but inform you that they won't be playing any major role until a little later in the story...I've got this planned out in my head, so now I just have to get everything down on paper!**

**Review! See that little button? Can't you hear it? It's screaming "PUSH ME!"**

**Obey the command!**


	5. Hate Thy Death

**Unimaginable**

**By; Ashleyia Days**

**IMPORTANT! READ TO UNDERSTAND FOLLOWING CHAPTER!: Okay, that was a little overboard, but no one really reads these things unless you say something like that...BUT it would be nice of you to read these so that you don't send me a review with something like this in it. Here it goes; I know in the Maximum Ride books(By James Patterson) don't really give you much information as to what things go in in the School other than the fact that there are physical tests thrown upon the flock for various reasons. (Personally, I think they do some of it for their own sick pleasure.) There is nothing about the white-coats testing things on the flock (like drugs, or new operations) and I believe that's because the flock in the books is one of a kind and irreplaceable. However, since Arrow and his flock exist, and Max is sort of depressed, they white-coats decide she's no longer an asset to the School and they pass a rule that Max alone could be used for things that could harm her mentally, physically, and possibly cause her death. (Mwahahahahahahahahahaha! What? No. I don't think I'm evil. I'm not evil, am I?)**

**Disclaimer: Look at my name. It says _Ashleyia Days_, right? No look at the cover of any of the four Maximum Ride books. Hmm...they say, _James Patterson_. Now, who wants to say I wrote the series? (If you raised your hand, expect a formal invitation to court via J.P.)**

**A/N: A reviewer brought up a good point awhile ago and I thought everyone should know this, since it's just, you know, good to know certain things. Kyphus Maltorix asked me exactly how to pronounce some of the new flocks names. I, being the total dunderhead I am, thought everyone would know automatically. So here you go(If anyone cares);**

_Max- _Author smacks head on wall You did not just ask me how to pronounce that...

_Arrow- _I think this one is easy enough... But, for those who need to know;( _AIR-ROW)_

_Cammi- (Cam- MEE)_

_Brytt- _Like the English word 'Bright' _(Bruh-Ite)_

_Vissa-_ _(Vi-sEE-uh)_

_Daela- (Day-luh)_

_Dyami- (Die- yam-EE)_

_Azura- (Ah-zur-rah)_

**Chapter Four: Hate thy Death**

In the last chapter...

_"Basically," I sighed, "you want to try some new tests that are potentially life threatening on me because I'm the one who most likely is effected by the recent death of my entire flock, courtesy of the Erasers. You don't want to try it out on the others because their too young, or are required in upholding the second flock, am I right?"_

_The woman looked flustered. I realized she probably wouldn't answer my question. "Whatever. Just take me wherever I'll be living until I die of some reactions from the drugs or pills or surgeries that you're going to do on me. I just hope it's a larger cage. Those middle sized dog crates are a little too small for my liking."_

_"O-of course." She smiled weakly. "I suppose I will."_

_The white-coats never cease to amaze me with their...I don't even have a word for it._

"Useless," I murmured to myself. "Just dead useless."

Absolutely nothing was right. The world wasn't right. The people in the world aren't right...Hey, the white-coats were just straight out wrong. What kind of humans introduced you to another flock where I might--key word _might_-- have fit in if I'd been able to stay a little longer. They show me a flock that I was suppose to connect to, then the rotten people take me away from them because of, well, because no reason. There isn't one. They're all cruel, cruel people intent on harming others who weren't like them. _Stupid white-coats._

I pounded my fist against the metal cage siding, not daring to punch too hard. It would be just my luck to get a broken wrist because of a little rage...I should be used to it by now! The School has been torturing me for years now. I couldn't just give up now.

Well, I couldn't care less about myself. I just wanted Arrow's flock out. Most of them were so young...I was determined to get them out, even if I have to sacrifice myself once again to get that job done. Hey, I've endured fourteen years of this torture--I can handle the rest of my life.

Sighing, I curled up, fighting against the rapidly coming insanity. There was so little to do here-- and absolutely no one to talk to. If the white-coats weren't about to use me, why had they taken me away so early from the others? From my calculations, I'd been away from the other flock for about a week or so, and it wasn't getting anymore exciting to say the least. _Come on,_I thought silently, _if you're going to do something to me, just do it already!_

If they didn't, then they'd have an insane, and strong, mutant on their hands.

"Max?"

My ears sharpened at the small voice and I sat forward eagerly. "Ari?" I called out gently, reaching to the small boy who'd just entered the room freely. From what I knew, Ari-- Jeb's son-- wasn't suppose to be roaming the halls freely. He was too young in the white-coats opinions, and he could be mentally affected by what he saw.

"I couldn't find you forever," Ari pointed out, looking at me sadly, "You weren't in the place you used to be. And dad wouldn't tell me anything. Nothing at all."

"It's okay Ari." I soothed. Sometimes the little boy could be more emotional than I'd ever thought. He was truly a good boy, whom just needed attention. With Jeb's job at the School, he couldn't give Ari the adequate amount of attention. Just another thing to add to my Why I hate Jeb List. "You've found me now. And," I added quickly, "I don't think they're going to move me anytime soon."

"I know. But-..." The little boy trailed off, distress on his face.

"Tell me, Ari."

"I know what they're going to do with you." He shivered.

"And what is that?"

"No!" He said, wrenching himself away from the bars. "I can't tell you. Heard two white-coats talking..bad things...Won't tell you! Scary. They're going to hurt Max..."

"Shh, Ari." I said to him from afar. "Pretend I never said that. Please just talk. I'm lonely all the time now. You're the first human I've seen in forever."

"Okay." Ari didn't move from his spot, which was located farther away than I would have hoped. He was so young to know all the things he did--I was afraid he'd become emotionally imbalanced when Jeb was away. I couldn't let that happen to Ari. "Their going to do things to me too."

"What?" I gaped at Ari. He couldn't be serious.

"I won't tell you that either." He said firmly and I nodded in acceptance. Nowadays,it didn't take much to make me agree with anyone--other than those dratted white-coats. If I began to actually agree with them, they'd take advantage of it before you could say 'School'.

"Ari?" I asked softly, wishing I could reach out to the boy who used to be so sweet not so long ago. "Have you seen Arrow lately or will the white-coats not let you in again?"

"They let me in, but Arrow and them don't like me, 'cause of my father."

"There are some people out the there who just don't understand that you're not your father. It means nothing to me. You're still the little boy who keeps me company either way."

Ari smiled, his face happy and carefree again. "Why doesn't anyone ever visit you 'cept me?"

"Ari," I chose my words carefully. Ari knew fully well that I had wings, but he couldn't see why it made me any different from everyone else. If only the white-coats could have those same thoughts. "I'm different and to everyone else, it's not a good thing. You see, no one really believes that they can trust me because of who I am. Don't worry. You give me enough visits to keep me happy."

"Doesn't dad ever come to see you?"

"Me and your father have a...disagreement right now. I don't really want to talk to him right now." I kept my eyes firmly on the bars, which weren't the slightest bit exciting enough to hold my attention. "It's nothing personal, Ari."

"You shouldn't fight. You need as many friends as you can get. You've already got enemies." Ari pointed out, looking unbelievably sad again. It hurt my heart to see him like that. I couldn't help but love the younger child like a brother.

"I know what I'm doing, Ari. Okay? I got...Fang and them out before, even if they died and I'm going to get the other flock out too. I have plenty of time." I left my true words unspoken--I was only trying to get the other flock out. Why should I get my hope up that I would have a chance to ever escape the School?

"No, the white-coats are coming for you in _five minutes._ At least, that's what I heard before I came to see you..." I gaped at Ari, but then he was gone.

_Five minutes?_ I thought, slightly panicked. Ari wasn't the most reliable source of information (he is only a young boy, after all), but he usually had his general facts right. If he said that the white-coats had some specially designed tests to try out on me, then they most likely would. And, unfortunately, the five minutes was probably right too, knowing my luck.

I couldn't keep back the groan that passed through my lips as I leaned back against the dog crate. They'd given me an entire week and then the day I decide to take action, I'm notified that the white-coats are going to do some never-before tested experiments...which might just lead up to my mysterious 'death'.

Those five minutes passed and I vaguely wished Ari had never informed me that they'd be here at that specific time. It didn't help me at all-- the only thing it really did was annoy me and wish that I'd never even been created in the first place. There was a large chance that I wouldn't come out of this. White-coats are famous for their risky and pointless tests.

"Hello, Jeb." I rolled my eyes at the man who entered the room. White-coats are _soooooo _overrated. "Surprise seeing you here." Obviously, I was being sarcastic. Hey, I was a trapped animal in a cage. What would you be doing? Sitting calmly? I think not.

"I-"

"No speeches today. Not in the mood, sorry. I know I'm a test dummy now, so just take me where you need to. Really, I could care less about what happens to me. No one else really cares, if the white-coats are anything to tell by. Just get on with it."

Jeb sighed, but made no move to talk. Perhaps my words got to him in some way. How, I couldn't tell. He was just an associate with the white-coats, no more, no less.

When the cage-- more of a crate when I think about it now-- was unlocked, I unfurled my wings and stretched. I really didn't care to giving Jeb a nice view, but the week in the cage caught up with me. "So," I asked casually, knowing that my lack of care would annoy the man I despised so much now. Had I really been able to trust Jeb? It was so long ago... "what crazy, life-threatening things are these people going to do to me?"

"I can't tell you, Max."

"Come on," I urged, "just a clue. Running on the treadmills for hours? Flying and being attacked by fake Erasers? What?"

"Neither of those." Jeb led me into an unusually empty hall, turning right...then there were once again all those unidentifiable turns...but I wasn't worried about those at that moment. "Fine," He said suddenly, still walking. I'll tell you...it's operations. They've got Arrow's flock, so they aren't afraid of you...dying. You're the one who would most likely survive what they're planning to do to you."

"Oh, how lovely." Sarcasm. I seemed to be using that a lot recently.

Jeb led me within a room with about five white-coats wearing masks. I bit my lip nervously, and only seconds later, I was tied to a table. _At least they had the decency to give me pass-out gas_, I though just before the world faded into a screen of intense blackness.

Just perfect.

**HeHe. Totally random chapter name to make you all panic and wonder who's going to die...**

**Hmm...Shorter Chapter. Sorry? Some out there like short chapters, others don't. For those of you who don't, I apologize.**

**Okay, I'm getting positive opinions about the review responses at the bottom, so I plan on continuing to do this now matter how many people start reviewing (come on, tell all your friends!) At first, I thought I might get reviews where everyone says I'm taking up their time with these 'stupid' things, but I guess I'm not. And remember, if you don't like these, you are not required to read them. Sometimes I may give hints of what coming up next, so read if you dare!**

**And remember, review and I will respond, not matter what! (Unless of course I drop dead, but I've got my friend promising to post my death story on here, so no worries! Actually, she's already finished it and I didn't get the time to rip it up...it hilarious as long as you're not the person dying!)**

**Review Responses**

**(6)**

**BlackVampireKat-**** That's the thing about me--you always have to expect the unexpected. HeHe...and I felt like causing some pain here...but really, I'm not usually a extremely cruel person...just a little mean, that's all. Isn't everyone? Err...byebye?**

**the epitome of randomness-**** Well, if you're practicing, continue to write your German. I enjoy puzzling over what you wrote until I finally give up and use a translator...sigh...I'm just way too inexperienced in other languages. I've got this goal of learning five languages, but I only know one: English.**

**Summer Johnson-**** I'm singing here, serious. I'm PERFECT now. WOOWOO! Okay, calming down. Sheesh. I really shouldn't have had that eigth can of Mountain Dew...You can actually get lost in my story? Wow...I'm taking that as a serious complement. **

**-Sugar.We're.Going.Down-NDBT- I don't think I want to know what a Dillweed is either...how did Rache even hear of that? Really... Fang, Iggy, and Brytt hugs you back!**

**Kyphus Maltorix****- See, we all need typical days, though as you can see, it didn't last very long did it? Sorry, I took awhile to get this update out. I've got a writer block o all of my stories, which is why this one is so short.**

**Skittle.Rocker- ****I'm unique!! Thanks. I really needed that one word to pop up soon.**


	6. Lost Memories

**Unimaginable**

**By; Ashleyia Days**

**For the first portion of this chapter, Max will sound weird. Remember, she's under more drugs than you'll even believe. Of course she's going to sound a little...odd. Who wouldn't. Poor, poor Max. (But it is rather fun to torture them a bit. Hmm, wonder what I'm going to do to those dratted, annoying erasers...) **

**Chapter Five: Lost Memories**

The world world felt...strange.

There wasn't any other way to put it into the right words. Perhaps I wasn't on a world at all, just floating in an abyss of a memory, or maybe it was simply a dream. A cruel dream, in a sense. It felt odd... All the time, I hadn't a clue what was happening to me. Or was it me at all? I couldn't even be sure of that.

I was floating...somewhere, it might have been my own mind. I had no way of telling for sure. I wasn't sure who I was...why did I feel this way? Shouldn't there be something to tell me why I was in the darkness alone, with no one there to guide me out. Surely, something could be done about this. The deep tone of black that settled around me was was unnerving enough, but it was much too quite for my taste.

Even in solid darkness, sounds were made. They were suppose to actually be clearer in the darkness. When one of your sense were dead, the remaining ones would become stronger to support the life-form it helped out. A newer white-coat had explained it to me before she found out that I was a mutant-- a freak. At the time, I thought she'd known all the while.

Of course, the senses thing didn't help at all anyway, because a moment later I found that all my senses were gone. No sounds were made in the impenetrable darkness. I couldn't feel as the air around me was invisible--I could swipe my arm through the emptiness around me and there wasn't a bit of wind to be felt. As for smell, well, there was either no smells to be smelt, or that was also gone. My eyes might work, but it was hard to tell. I only saw the darkness around me when my eyes were opened or closed. It didn't matter.

The world seemed frozen as I stayed still, floating in mid-air just the same. It was all hazy and I felt myself wanting this foolishness to stop. Who was I? What was I? Surely it couldn't be normal to be floating like this, even in a dream. They had restrictions too.

What I needed was to wake up--to find out was going on...

I groaned, but no sound came back to my ears. Perhaps, there was something wrong with me...

After all, if there wasn't, wouldn't I at least know my name? Shouldn't I have some sort of memory of my life to make this dream come to life? Or maybe that was the point.

Did I somehow loose my memory in life? A crash or something? What if the darkness was here because there was no dream to put in its place--nothing to stop the terrifying darkness to leave me alone. No dreams to drive it away? Wouldn't I be able to remember something?

I had too many questions I couldn't answer until I woke up from this dream--or was it a nightmare?

The question was: Could I wake up. Possibly, I could be in some sort of coma...

"_Not well.."_

The voices were dim, but she assumed these must be the people who were helping her. Or were they the ones who'd put her in this sinking darkness in the first place? Who were these people? Why couldn't she remember at all?

Maybe I have to be awake to remember everything...

_"Heart Rate...increased...twenty percent. Not looking good..."_

Were they talking about me? Was this some sort of freaky medical procedure they had me undergoing? But why? From what I heard about the heart rate thing, I most likely wasn't doing so good. But if this was a risky treatment, or whatever, why would they attempt it on me?

Did I volunteer?

_"Experiment code number 48202-RM...failing... Dying...Nothing we can...do."_

The voices continued to cut in and out now, but I understood fully at that very exact moment. I was dying. Whatever they were doing to me was making me slip. Maybe...just maybe if I remembered, then I'd know how to save myself. I'm young...I think! Whatever the case, I'm much too young to die.

And if I do die, I don't want it to be on an operation table, cut open.

_"What do you mean, nothing you can do! Save Max!"_

The final voice came in perfectly clear, emitting from a male who was somewhere behind the people I suspected were leaning over me. He sounded worried...Did someone here, in this room, truly care about what happened to me? No, an old voice said from behind a locked door in which I suspected was holding all my memories.

No, no one cared for me. Even I could remember that much. No one alive cared for me. That much was clear.

And, my name's Max...maybe.

Who knows. Maybe another person was there being treated. After all, Max was more commonly a boy name rather than a girls. Who'd name their daughter, Max? I surely wouldn't. Or I might... Everything was so confusing! I felt my blood boil in sudden anger.

That anger vanished as soon as I realized that I'd been able to feel something! Immediately after, I wished I hadn't. A sudden wave of intense pain washed over my frozen body and I gasped a strangled moan. Whatever painkillers they'd given me before were no longer working. Apparently those working on me heard my pain, and I felt more peace wash over me again.

At first I struggled against the soothing medication, but as it got more and more intense, I felt my body relax and the black void around me vanished, leaving me completely peaceful and asleep. It was better this way. No pain or suffering. I didn't want to wake up again.

Right before I fell into that deep sleep, I heard one of the doctors say, _"She's alright. The procedure is nearly complete. I believe she'll make it."_

Whatever he said after that didn't matter. I was asleep in a place where I couldn't be hurt. And I liked it that way.

When I finally came to, I braced myself for the impact of the memories of my past, that I'd been unable to access while in my comatose state, to come back. It took me a full hour to realize that they still weren't emerging from behind that locked vault door in my brain.

I knew nothing--not even my own name!

I pushed against that rusty, old vault door, hoping it would break from my strength. I was stronger than a regular human, I knew that, but I had no clue why. At the moment, I hardly even cared. I wanted this wall to crumble. It had to open--it looked so old...how could it put up with the pressure I put on it? Somehow it did and I collapsed to the metal floor in pure panic.

I lay on the floor for a while, sobbing, before I realized what I'd just thought...

Metal...

Floors weren't metal. At least regular ones weren't...I think. So why would these ones be?

As I opened my eyes, the only thing I could see was vague haziness around me. Nothing was clear. Everything was a grayish/white smudged. My first thought was that I was in one of those first graders writing books. Little first graders were always erasing things.

A minute or so later, that uncomfortable haze slowly worked its way into a very clear state. I almost wished it hadn't. I was in a cage. Had I been in a place like this before? Or was this all something new? I pushed on that hidden door in my brain and it still refused to budge. I would have to find out a different way then. Suddenly, i paused, realizing that maybe I didn't want to remember.

What if my past was filled with horrible images of torture and abuse that had been inflicted on me, or even others. Perhaps this was my own mind's defense against terrible things that had happened to me. Would I really want those memories back?

No, I don't.

All so very suddenly, I remembered one thing. That absolute need to escape this place.

Well, that meant none of this was new to me.

There was a groan from somewhere near me and I twisted on pure impulse, determined not to let an enemies get the best of me. With my groggy state, there was a chance the humans (I still wasn't sure whether or not I myself was human) could possibly beat me at my own game. Or was that someone else's game?

The sound had emitted from the next cage over and I lowered my defenses automatically as I saw a little boy, no older than seven, toss on the uncomfortable floor of the cage. I knew automatically that this wasn't how it was suppose to be...how I knew that much was beyond me.

"Hello?" I whispered, confused and disoriented.

The little boys eyes opened, echoing the confusion I knew must be in my own. "Who are you?" The little boy murmured. His gaze flickered a moment, then pure panic took over his small body. "Who am I?!"

" I don't know, but please, can't you be a little quieter? Who ever locked us in here can't be very nice. I don't wnat them to know I'm awake. I think it's time I--we got away from this place. It's like a prison here."

The small boy was quiet, a look of concentration on his small face. "When I think really hard, I remember a little bit. I know my name--it's Ari, I think. I can't think of yours though, no matter how hard I try. I know you, I can feel it! But your name's just kinda gone."

"Can you remember anything else? Anything at all?" I whispered back to him. If we were going to get out of here right now, we'd need any information there was to be found.

"Little." His eyes cleared. "I remember...my dad works here. He let me be operated on." Tears slowly began to fall to the floor of the cage. I wanted to wrap my arms around the boy to comfort him, but the cages had other things in mind. "They--I think their called white-coats-- were trying to make some way to get wolf genes blended with humans. They've already done it--the things they made were Erasers. I think what they did to us was make us Erasers, but different. I think we have control to act normal, and regular Erasers can't do that. They're cruel and they kill before they talk."

I felt that the roles we played were wrong. Shouldn't I be the one explaining this stuff to him? Why did I have to learn things that I must already have known from a little seven year old, named Ari? "Anything else?"

"Well, I remember that you had wings before the operation." And thus the reason why I had strength beyond a humans. I wasn't even human! I was some sort of mutant. "And you still do, but now I do, too. But there's nothing else." He bowed his head in shame.

'That's okay, Ari. You remember a lot more than I do. The next step is to get out of here."

"When do we do that?"

I got a deviousness look in my eye out of instinct. "Right now."

"Awesome."

**I've updated! Didn't five reviews this time though. I just got tired of waiting...sigh. I hope you aren't all mad at me for makind Max an Eraser! Remember, she's a special Eraser that has actual feelings...Please, forgive me! I don't want to die today!**

**Review Responses**

**(4)**

**philokiller- First of all, nice name. And I can't really tell you whether or not they died. Maybe that would ruin the entire plot (wink, wink)**

**Skittle.Rocker- I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! I'm evil! **

**Well, I think that was a little much...**

**And thanks. I hoped you like this chapter just as much as the last one. And please ignor my little rant above...**

**Mkitkat- ****Don't feel stupid...I forgive you :) No big deal in missing one. The actions should be coming up soon enough. I think...**

**Kyphus Maltorix-**** It has to be James Patterson. He's a great author with several books sold (at least a million from what I heard), while I can barely finish all my fanfictions. I don't plan on giving this one up, though. I'm really into it.**

**Oooooooh, a forbidden language...**


	7. Escape

**I know it's been a long, long time since I've updated and I'm really sorry for the delay. I honestly had so many ideas and no definite way to go. Really, the hardest question was whether or not Max should have really lost her memories. Should she remember Fang and her flock at all? And how exactly should they escape? Really, these sort of stumped me for so time and I'm still confused. I'm just going to see where this goes. I really hope you all like it. I think I owe it to you since I've been gone for such a long time...**

**I've even changed my username since I've updated this.**

* * *

**Chapter Six: Escape**

I let my eyes wonder over to the heavy metal door only thirty or so feet away from where I crouched, trying to break the lock without making too much noise. Me getting out was just a large stroke of luck. Who would have known that a white-coat was stupid enough to leave the cage door of a recently mutated (even more so now, with the wolf in me) girl completely unlocked. True, a very serious sounding alarm had been set off some distance away, but that wasn't my concern.

My concern was getting Ari out of his cage.

"Ari?" I asked as quietly as I could, hoping the small, wide-eyed boy was brave enough to do this. "Do you remember anything else?" It had been nearly a week since our operation, and our memories were still clouded. Ari never regained anymore than the ones he'd informed me of that faithful day. I'd taken to being called Max, since it was the most natural.

Despite being under some heavy drugs, I was fairly sure one of the white-coats that had operated on me called me that name.

He shook her his head, also driving away the tired look in his intelligent eyes. "No. I'm sorry Max."

I waved away his apology. "I didn't think you would anyway--Yes!" I cheered, but quieted down soon after. The lock fell apart in my small hands, so I set the pieces down on the floor, helping Ari stand up and brush off some dirt that had found its way onto our clothes.

"You did it!" He whispered, excited.

"Yeah, but how do we get out of here? This place is a fortress."

Ari smiled, a seven year old look of mischief on his small face. "I know the way out--in the halls. They didn't mean to let me see, but I did anyway." He held himself in a proud manner and I laughed, cuffing him gently.

"And it's night. They had to get rid of some of their night guards because they tried to help us. They wouldn't have hired any yet, would they?" I responded to his seven year old humor with only thoughtfulness. If I keep this up, I'm going to start to scare myself.

"Uh-uh." He shook his head in a negative manner. "I remember someone saying it to me once. I think one of the white-coats. Dunno."

"Thanks Ari. How about we be quiet now so we can get out effectively?" I helped him up brushing the dust from his clothes, smiling gently. In human form, he looked like his ordinary cute self, but I still maintained my wings. They were my only memories. Mutant. That's all I was to these people. A freak.

A test.

Unfortunately for them, I was a very smart, very pissed mutant freak who was planning on kicking some white-coat butt once we were free and on the run.

Figuring out the fortress was no problem at all with Ari there to help me. He had an amazing memory, which is probably the reason why he's regaining his past while I remain as amnesic as ever.

The halls of the School were oddly quite. Usually, guards would be paired up in every corridor, pacing back and forth to make sure none of us avians could possible escape. Every once in awhile, the distant sound of an electric door opening and shutting reached the area where Ari and I crouched in the darkness of a corner.

Since a number of the guards had been fired for unknown reasons in the last two days, we were virtually alone other than the very few guards remaining and a dozen or so white-coats who worked during the night. I motioned quietly for Ari to follow me and he did. There was no time to joke right now—not when our lives depended on this escape. If we were caught, Ari would be given a second chance, but in a white-coats eyes, I was old enough to know better. This time I would die. I was prepared to risk it all for this. Dude, Fang is right; I _do _sound like an overprotective mother.

We passed four or five doors before my oversensitive ears picked up the sounds of breathing—deep breathing. Not awake breathing, but sleeping breathing. Oh yes, Max. That sounded _so intelligent._

"There's someone sleeping in there." Ari whispered in a dead silent tone and I nodded as I dropped into a crouch again, pressing my ear against the sealed door. Ari followed, looking with wide eyes at my face as we waited. "White-coats aren't allowed to sleep in their job. They aren't 'llowed at all, 'r else they'll be fired."

"I know, Ari." And I did. Over the week, I'd learned quite a few things, or at least, I relearned them. This memory-loss thing is really starting to tick me off. Why did this have to happen to me? This is a lucky life I've got here, ya know. Really lucky.

And yes, that was sarcasm.

"It's not white-coats."

I could tell that too, but I wasn't prepared to say anything aloud just yet. My voice tends to carry, especially when I'm angry. And angry would be awfully mild for the feelings I have right now. Those white-coats had better stay away right now if they know what's best for them.

As I sat there for a few more seconds, I suddenly was overcame, voices speaking softly in my ear. My first thought was to tell them to bug off, but then I realized this was not just any voice, but voices from my memory somewhere.

_It's the only way we have any chance._

_Please--don't ever come back for me. I'll manage. Promise me_

_I promise_

But then the voices changed to slightly less familiar voice, but I could still feel the fact that I knew who was saying the words, and I cared for them, even if it was just a little.

_No, Max. Please don't._

_You're not going to sacrifice yourself for us._

_They'll come today._

_Why aren't you screaming..._

There were more, like me. I couldn't distinguish anything else other than that, but I knew. It was like a gut feeling, pounding through me. I just _knew._

"Ari, don't talk, just listen to me." I took a deep breath, a cool expression unsuccessfully adopted from Fang made up her features. "You have to stay out here. I'm going in. I think there are more like what I am—I mean, what I used to be before I was a Eraser. If there are, I need to get them out. I think...I think I promised them." Ari's eyes widened more than they were before, if that was even possible. "If you hear me shout, get outta here, okay? You know the way."

He stood to his full height, and stepped farther back into the shadows, barely visible only a moment later. His soft voice reassured me before I pushed the door open without a sound. "I will."

The room was small, yet light because of a small light bulb hanging from the middle of the ceiling. A row of cages were stacked against the far side, and the sparse light showed to silhouettes of five sleeping figures. Once again, I got the feeling of knowing this place, and these unrightfully imprisoned people.

One of them, a boy with piercing blue eyes sat up, fully alert and we stared at each other for a few seconds. Slightly annoyed by yet another returning feeling of remembrance, I pushed it away, waiting for the boy to talk. Talk he did.

"Max?"

I kept my eyes locked carefully on his, shaking my head light. So, my name really was Max. At least there was no doubt in that. " I don't know."

Walls immediately went up around his eyes and mistrust shone in them. I had a remarkable intuition that the look wasn't rare. " What do you mean, you don't know. You spent awhile with my flock here."

"I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice not sounding that at all. Well, can you blame me. It really wasn't my fault. It was those stupid, dratted... "Look, I can't remember anything right now, okay? I woke up after some sort of huge expirement that morphed me genes more than they already are and my memory is just gone. I just remembered that something was here and I needed to help them. So, are you coming or not?"

"Where?" His tone was practically engulfed by flames. He sounded so bitter, so full of hate.

"I'm getting out of here. It's a vulnerable time for the white-coats. I promised to help you, didn't I? I can't remember it, but I know I did."

"You did, but that's supposed to be years in the future."

"Too bad; we're going now."

"You really don't remember anything, do you Max?" I stayed silent, edgy and about ready to explode. Any minute now, the white-coats would check my cage. Once they saw I was gone that heart-wrenching alarm would sound it's shrill call out for miles. " We never planned what to do about Azura's problem. She's afraid of her wings." He said it in a tone that suggested I should already know this.

_I didn't know that, you flippin' birdbrain. I lost all my memory. I didn't even know my name let alone how one of your flock is afraid of her own wings. _I don't mean to sound harsh or anything, but come on! How was I honestly supposed to know that?

It only took me a second to think of a solution. Hey, I'm the absolute master of strategy. " Take off your shift." He did an amazing imitation of Ari's expression only a few minutes before.

"What? Why?"

I rolled my eyes, motioning for him to hurry up. "Don't be such a baby. I'll get you all unlocked, then we can fold your shirt up and use it as a blindfold for Azura. She can't panic is she can't see any of our wings. You can carry her when we fly."

"And Daela?"

I sent him a look asking, _and what about her?_ Once again, relearning all this was starting to bug me.

"She won't talk; won't move."

"Will she fly?"

He shook his head. "I don't know. I think she'll recover once we get out of here."

"Look, umm, well, your name doesn't matter right now. I'm going to go different ways once we're out. Head to the desert, they won't look for you out there."

"Why--"

"I'll slow you down. I have no memory and I'm going to need to go my own way to have the possibility at gaining any of it back. No hard feelings, but I can't help you past opening these cages for your flock. As soon as that's done and we're away from the School, there isn't a thing I can do for you. After being here for all these years, freedom should be easy for you accept, as long as you let yourself."

"You're a weird one, Max."

I smiled softly, breaking the lock to his cage as quietly as I could. I went to the next one and broke that one too. Slowly I went around to all of them. A firm belief held me in this room. I would do this right. "I have this odd feeling I've been told that more than once." I cracked the locked to Daela's cage and took the all-too-skinny eight year old in my arms."I'll carry her out."

He made a brief sound of protest when we emerged into the hall and say Ari, but I stared him down. "He comes too, otherwise you can go put yourselves back in those cages."

Our group barely made it to the cover of woods where we were about to take off when a loud alarm rang from the School, and the doors flew open, a dozen primitive Erasers bursting through, sadistic grins of their wolf-ish faces.

* * *

**Review Responses**

**(6)**

**Broadway2B- Thanks. And so, here's some more!**

**-****Hehe. I updated. Really sorry 'bout the long wait. I had absolutely no clue what to do and I really want to make this as original as possible, but it's just not working out for me. Hopefully I'll get some ideas soon. I'm basing the newish Max off my best friend and has yet to give me any good ideas**

**Now Look What We've Come To- ****I know. I was kinda shocked at myself as I wrote this. I can see her as one though, as long as she's nicer than the others. And I made Ari nice too. He didn't deserve to die at the end of the third book. Err, you have read that right :)**

**philosophykiller****- You're welcome. Yeah, I reread it right now, but it was meant to be that way, so whatever.**

**Veront Ilinae- ****Yep, I've decided to make her loose her memory (can't tell you for how long) Poor, Max... Ahh, I should be getting to the action soon, but I'm not really sure. I totally had no idea even how to make her and Ari escape. That's really why this chapter took so long for me to finally update. I don't even know how long it's been.**

**bookluvrxoxo****- I know I am, but it's so fun. Are you evil? You should be, ya know. People who aren't just don't understand the true meaning of fun. What's there to live for if you're not evil?**


	8. Little Brother

**I feel awful. Once more, I forgot to update for, well, forever. And now, once I finally remember to, it's a short chapter without an amazing amount of excitement. But to all my faithful readers...there should be exciting things coming up. My plans aren't set in stone, though, so feel free to drop some ideas. **

* * *

**Chapter Seven: Little Brother**

Seeing the wild eyes of twenty or so attacking Erasers brought back the oddest sense of deja vu. It was almost like I was...reliving something that already happened awhile ago. Narrowing my eyes at the Eraser, I quickly decided that I would have to think about the past now.

"Get in the sky!" I yelled, pushing the oldest of the several Avians to give him some motivation. "I don't think they can fly. No wings." I pointed out at his confused face.

"What about you?" He asked quickly, tossing a quick glance behind him at the oncoming Erasers. He picked up the smallest child, Azura. She was still blindfolded, but wasn't shaking any longer. _Hopefully she gets over that fear. It makes it so much harder for the if she has to be carried. _

"I can get Ari away from here after you leave. Just go." Always the self-sacrificing one, I am. I wasn't sure why I was so keen on staying behind while the other flock got away, but something told me it was something I would do. So I did. Honestly, I must not be worried about my general health much.

Suddenly, the Erasers were on us, lunging for our throats. I was the closest to the school, which was still shrouded in darkness, so the Erasers got to me first. Several stopped, grinning madly as they circled, licking their lips. I grimaced. "You know," I muttered, awkwardly fighting them off to give the flock some time to get away. "It's. Not. Nice. To. Hurt. Little. Kids." I punctuated each word with a punch or a kick. _This is really stress relieving. _"You perverts!" I wasn't sure where the last part came from, but it fit nicely.

Tossing a quick look behind me, I rotated into a more comfortable fighting position, no longer worried about anyone but myself and Ari. The others were safe. For now. "Ari," I whispered, knowing the white-coats weren't smart enough to give the Erasers enhanced hearing "Do your wings work yet?"

"Dunno." He whispered back, smirking smugly at one of the Erasers before he ducked back behind me.

I shrugged. "No problem." With one last kick , I spun,, grabbed Ari around the waist, and used the momentum to propel myself in the air.

Ari is six years old? Yes. Ari is light for his age? Yes. It's easy to take off with said Ari in my arms?

Not so much.

Despite the small lift off problem, adrenaline rushed through my mutated veins. My arms ached. My wings burned. But the knowledge that if I failed, we would be killed kind of gave me just a _small_ reason not to fail.

Again, sarcasm.

_**(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)**_

I flew an hour straight through after taking off, my arms feeling like rubber the entire way. Somehow, that didn't matter. I just had to get away from the torture the white-coats were kind enough to provide me with.

But really, you have to give Ari some credit. He didn't squirm the entire time. I think he was too shocked by the fight and the fact that he was flying. Once more, you can't blame him. It's not everyday someone like him gets to fly with the one and only Max.

Out of the corner of my tired eyes, caught a glimpse of a plateau relatively hidden from the surrounding land by jutting rocks in every which direction. Convenient. The only way to reach the center was to come from the top. There was no way to be seen. _Perfect. _"I'm gonna land, Ari. You ready?" He didn't answer. _What the-? _

I looked down, my nerves fried enough for me to consider snapping at him. "Ari—"

Asleep.

How the heck did someone fall asleep after seeing what he saw that very same night? All the blood... I couldn't help but shudder. I was not afraid of it, but seeing so much at such an age could give anyone nightmares. Obviously, Ari's a whole lot stronger than I ever suspected.

Lucky kid.

I landed, placing Ari on a sandy section of the plateau as I wandered to far far end, leaning against the rock as I scanned the horizon. We were alone. Completely utterly alone. It was an odd thing to hear. For as long as I can remember, which isn't very long to be truthful, there was always something watching me. Cameras, that man called Jeb, white-coats. But here in the desert, there was nothing but me, Ari, and an unhealthy amount of sand.

Ari. It was hard to believe that the only one I have to worry about is that kid sleeping not twenty feet away from where I stood. We both shared the same problem—mutations. Flying wolves. That was all we are to the white-coats and I know they'll do anything in their power to get us back in those crappy medium-sized dog crates. Especially Jeb.

Jeb. The man who sentenced Ari to a painful science experiment to change his entire genetic make-up. He did such an awful job at being a dad, it was almost painful. I would do better. From now on, Ari's my little brother. We're the only family we have.

Me. The one who would get both of us through our lives.

We could be normal. We'll go somewhere vague. A place where the white-coats will never think to look. We will survive. I smiled.

I may be a pessimist, but that doesn't mean I can't change. I will for Ari.

He's my little brother now. Can't just think about myself now, can I?

A map. We would need one. Could I chance leaving Ari alone? Waking him now would just be cruel. Our schedule was tight. Any minute, the Erasers could appear and haul us back to the school. Time was crucial.

No. Getting out of here was priority right now. Sleeping could wait. I frowned meaningfully. "Sorry Ari." I shook him awake. Fortunately, it didn't take much. He was awake in two seconds flat.

"Max?" He questioned as he yawned. Surprisingly, he didn't pull a Gazzy and just roll over. _Wait. Who's Gazzy? Is it someone from my past? _"Is it Erasers?"

You know, it's really sad when a six year old wakes up and thinks crazed wolves might be attacking.

"No, we just need to get away from here. We're too close to the School. If we stay here, we'll be easy to find."

Ari nodded, brushing the sand from his already-ragged clothes. Hmm, those clothes would be a problem. We couldn't go into town with his clothes covered in blood and dirt. We might be a _little_ suspicious. Just a little. Small. Microscopic.

What a joke.

"Come on, Ari." I motioned him over, suddenly feeling tired. Everything was just becoming too complicated. I expected this to be easy once we got away from the school, but it was only getting harder. All my plans were in pieces—Or they would be, if I was one to make plans.

And since when has a plan ever gone right?

It's easier just to wing everything.

"We have to see if your wings will hold you up." Even if they could, it wouldn't be for long. I would still end up lugging around a sixty pound kid.

"They only come out when I look like a wolf or an...Eraser." He looked to the ground in shame. Why did such a sweet kid like Ari have to suffer. Me? I'm fourteen. I can handle the problems the white-coats send my way, but Ari? He did nothing.

"I know, but you've got to try. Just remember, I'm the same as you. We're both Erasers. We can be good despite our problems."

He looked up hopefully. "Ya think so, Max?"

"I know so, little brother."

Whenever I talk to Ari, all those sarcastic comments that come to mind disappear. Even internally, I knew this kid really needed me to act different. Breath, Max. You can change.

What was I saying...thinking?

_**Anyone who got this far really should review. It gives me inspiration. I'm not going to beg like I did before. I'm just going to hope that everyone is nice enough to give me a review.**_

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**Reviews**

**(7)**

**weirdpeopleruletheworld – As per your wish, I have updated.**

**jennifer ****(anonymous) – Thank you so much. I know it's highly unlikely that the person who wrote this will ever see my reply, but I want to thank them for being one of the first people to give my some positivity on making Max an Eraser.**

**MaxRideRox**** – As for your Fang question; I meant for that little slip to occur. It's much like her Gazzy revelation in this chapter. It just wasn't meant to be ****_caught._ Your suggestion was one that I've been considering, but I don't know yet. I might start a poll to decide. **

**MaxFangIggyNudgeGazzyAngel**** (anonymous) – Did I get those in the right order. Anyway. This chapter should answer your question**

**Maximum-and-firestar-rule**** – Yup. She is an Eraser, but different. The differences will become more noticeable in future chapters**

**badattitude**** (anonymous) – Your review was short, but for some reason, it was one of the most inspiring. How odd...**

**lazerwolf314**** (anonymous) – I love the though of Ari as a cute little boy. It's just no fun to read about the Eraser-Ari from the books. Personally, I like my Ari.**


	9. The Hidden House

**_IMPORTANT AN_:This is mostly a filler chapter. I was going to make this one a whole lot longer(this chapter and the next chapter were going to be combined at first), but I have a couple question to ask my amazing readers. Said questions are at the end of this chapter, so no one forgets wile they're reading.**

**Two updates within three days of each other. _That _is what you call a phenomenon. It's also probably never going to happen again either. How depressing. **

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**Chapter Eight: The Hidden House**

"How do I know if I can fly? Are you gonna drop me off the side?" When he thought I wasn't looking, Ari chanced a glance over the side, a little green in the face. This is the same kid who fell asleep while I was holding him over 300 feet in the air for over an hour. Now, he was afraid of a fifty foot drop.

"I can't just drop you off the side; you'd be a pancake when you hit the ground." I stopped for a minute. "Probably a strawberry pancake."

Pancakes. I've never tasted one before, but from differentiating methods I knew of their existence. What I wouldn't do for edible food right now. It feels like I haven't eaten in days. At least, it might have been days, hours, weeks. It all sort of blends when you're in a cage.

"So how are we gonna _know_." He sounded exasperated. Yeah, a little kid. To _me_.

"Dropping you off a cliff is starting to sound better and better." I made sure his little ears couldn't hear my words. Really, I didn't need him thinking I hate him. He's just...frustrating. Sheesh, now I know I'm turning into a mom.

"Huh?"

"Nothing, nothing. Come on Ari. I'll just carry you for now. We can settle the flying issues later." He looked more than happy to oblige.

I didn't blame him one bit. Despite having flown for an hour to this plateau, I just couldn't bring myself to trust the wings completely. They may be a part of me, but flying isn't a way of traveling to most humans. _Come on, Max. _Some irrational part of me chanted. _Fly farther away. _Okay, so maybe the last part wasn't irrational, but still...

Even though it was clear Ari didn't want to, he took a few steps towards me and I scooped him up, holding him a more more maneuverable position and decreasing the chances of dropping him. He was even lighter than I was expecting once again. _Hehe. I'm Max the superhero now? _I shook my head vigorously, stopping _that_ trail of thought right there. It just had no way of ending well. "Ari, you might want to close your eyes. You can go back to sleep if you want to."

Internally, I didn't want him to. He was company even if he was a six year old. Flying for hours on end with only your own thoughts can't be any fun. Ari gave me a wide grin and I melted. Yes, I Max the Invinsible melted. Nothing was going to happen to this kid on my watch. _Nothing. _"M'kay." He yawned, leaning into me.

I waited a moment for him to get comfortable, then got a running start before leaping off the plateau. Just as I thought. Jumping off something made the beginning of flight made it much easier to gain altitude. I stored the piece of information away in my dysfunctional brain. I'd love to go all cliché and say we flew off into the sunset, but it was already night—the sun set hours before we even escaped the School.

Though we had passed a town a decent while back, I threw the idea of going back that way out the metaphoric window. The town was way too close to the school for comfort. We would keep going until I came across a small gas station, or something like that. All I needed was a map and maybe some food. How that last part was going to work out, I don't know. Without a dime in my pocket, how was I supposed to manage to pay for something? There was an easy solution to that problem: don't pay.

Yeah, you can tell I broke out of the School without planning much.

I came across a gas station in the middle of nowhere. Literally. Nowhere. Even the road leading to it seem to fade. I stole a Atlas near the door and about three sandwiches before the surprisingly clean man at the counter noticed me. We, as in Ari and I, stopped for a brief minute to discuss where to go next; our discussion method was to have Ari close his eyes and point to a state on the map.

After going through several maps in the Atlas, we had in narrowed down to a small town in Tennessee. Gatlinburg. Hopefully it's random enough that the Erasers don't think to attack us there. I picked Ari back up and we continued without another word. What could there possibly be to say?

_**(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)(~)**_

So maybe Gatlinburg wasn't as subtle as I was expecting.

Apparently, it's a tourist magnet. I'm sure I'll figure out what everyone wants to see in this tiny town eventually. After all, we are staying here until Erasers find us or someone sees us _not living in an actual house. _If I have to guess, though, it was probably the mountains drawing these people in.

Living space confused me at first. There were places to stay, but all of them cost money. Luckily, we ran across a little rundown cottage-style house in a little clearing on the outside of town. "Now this," I said, landing quietly. On the way there, I mastered landing. Ari, we discovered, could only go limited distances each day. Though I'll never tell a soul, I rather liked holding Ari as I flew. "is convenient."

Ari wrinkled his nose, but didn't say a word.

He didn't have to. The house was a complete dump. The walls were crumbling, the roof had definitely seen better day, and the windows were caked with mud and dirt. Judging from the thick foliage growing up where a path used to be, I can say fairly well that no one's been here for at least ten years.

"Let's take a look inside, Ree." Do you know how hard it is to nickname a kid who only has three letters in their name? Knowing me, it probably wont stick.

He shrugged, happily walking up the the front door and turning the knob. I really didn't expect that to work, but I wasn't going to spoil his moment. Imagine my surprise when the door actually opened. _Okay, so the last owner didn't expect it to be found way out here. _

The inside wasn't much better than outside. Sheet covered furniture was the only plus I was seeing. Dirt at least an inch thick covered all the noticeable surfaces, the power didn't work, and not a bit of sunlight broke through the mud-lined windows. "So it needs to be cleaned. We can do that."

"In a few years maybe." He pointed out, somehow sounding completely content at the same time. Ari seems to be a constantly happy little kid, even when the situation is serious.

I hate cleaning. Pure and simple. But, unfortunately, it had to be done. We didn't plan on moving on very fast. If things went to plan, I wanted Ari to get through a whole school year before we left for a more...inconspicuous town.

I started in on the window using water from a small, clean pond out back.

Two weeks after our escape from the school, a lot of things were looking up. Ari was practicing his flying—and getting quite good at it—, we're well hidden from all the things that howl, and the house is as clean as it's every going to be. To be truthfully honest, that's not saying much.

The house was a little bigger than it appeared to be. It had a small kitchen/living room area that took up most of the first floor. Up a rickety set of spiral stairs was a single bedroom, but it was larger than most. I found a set of curtains in a closet and hung it down the middle of the room to create some privacy. It was cozy. And small. A little too small.

It almost reminded me of my old cage. A shiver ran down my spine. I _hated_ that freaking cage.

We haven't so much as thought about our Eraser-selves recently. It seems like a ad memory. I just want to punch the bad halves of ourselves and make them disappear.

If only it was that easy.

"Ari!" I called, walking outside and narrowing my eyes. Ari also discovered how well he was able to hide from me in the woods. I panicked the first time he disappeared, but now it''s just infuriating.

I think that's why he does it.

**Quick Q's (please answer in a review)**

_**1. Max and Ari will be going to school(maybe). They need new names so they can't be tracked as easily. Last name(s) will also be accepted. Suggestions?**_

_**2. Max and the Flock. Reunite Soon? Or Later? Should she know who they are by that time?**_

_**3. Should Ari get a pet? If so, what? This is not necessarily going to happen, but the idea amused me. Names also accepted for the pet.**_

**ANONYMOUS REVIEWS ACCEPTED!**

**Reviews**

**(6)**

**lexigrrl09 – I'm glad people seem to like my little Ari. Don't you just want to hug him? Or is that just me...?**

**musichun9 (anonymous) – It's not really Max's fault though...well, I can't really say anything about her memory because it may spoil a plot twist coming up later in the story.**

**5253Racer – I'm glad :)**

**broadway2B – My story has made it's way up from the sad, dismal first chapter, eh? Now it's captivating. You made my day.**

**MelRose520 – I've never really read a fanfiction with Ari actually in the story just as much as the main character is. I thought he was neglected, so I made my own Ari up. I've extremely happy everyone likes him so far. I try really hard to keep Max in character. I'm glad it's actually paying off.**

**ObsessiveReader1223 (anonymous) – It's too bad this review was anonymous. They guessed one of the minor events that will happen soon.**


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